Growing numbers of people with atopic dermatitis (AD) are expressing ‘steroid phobia,’ and counseling these patients and their families on appropriate use of corticosteroids can help ease their concerns. There is a time and place for steroids in treating AD, but the advent of advanced non-steroidal topicals, including ruxolitinib (Opzelura, Incyte), a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor cream, is expanding treatment choices—without sacrificing efficacy.

In this episode of Prescribing Hope in AD: The Podcast, Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, MSCI, FAAD, an Associate Professor of Medicine at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science Chicago Medical School in North Chicago, IL, and Founder and Director of the Center for Medical Dermatology + Immunology Research in Chicago, IL, and Linda Stein Gold, MD, Director of Dermatology Clinical Research at Henry Ford Health in Detroit, MI, discuss the role of the new generation of advanced topicals in AD and compare and contrast potential side effects seen with steroids to the boxed warning that appears on topical JAK inhibitors, providing key context for treatment decision-making.

In this episode of Get Lit, Ted Rosen, MD, the Editor-in-Chief of The Dermatology Digest®, takes a deep dive into the recent dermatology literature, including a large-scale study in the April 2026 issue of Cancer Research Communications that showed that lifelong singles develop cancer at significantly higher rates than those who have or are married. He also weighs in on the possible unintended consequences of a price increase in condoms due to shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. “There's a concern in infectious disease circles that if condoms get too expensive, they won't be bought, they won't be used, and that there might be a surge in sexually transmitted diseases,” he says.

Milestones in Vitiligo Treatment

When Maui, HI-based Dermatologist George Martin, MD, first started out in 1985, vitiligo was considered an orphan disease, but times have changed. “The evolution over the past 40-plus years has been nothing but astounding,” he says in this episode of Prescribing Hope: The Podcast, which features audio-only bonus content.

Calling the development and approval of topical ruxolitinib (Opzelura, Incyte) for vitiligo a “total game-changer” and proof that the Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription (JAK/STAT) signaling pathway was a major player in the pathogenesis of vitiligo, Dr. Martin discusses the importance of managing patient expectations and encouraging patience during the repigmentation process. “We will know at six months how well a patient [using topical ruxolitinib] is doing, but people continue to repigment after two years and even into the third year,” he says.

He also shares tips on diagnosing vitiligo and on which autoimmune comorbidities to look for in patients, including thyroid disease and pernicious anemia. Make sure to stay tuned until the end for a sneak peek into the robust vitiligo pipeline.

Unfortunately, credibility alone doesn't guarantee visibility on social media, explains Mistica LaBrasca, a Board-certified Physician Assistant and Co-founder of SkinLaB by Dr. LaBrasca in Cranberry Township, PA. She shares some road rules for success for providers who are looking to cultivate relationships with patients on Instagram, TikTok, and other social sites in this bonus episode of The Blend.

Host Sonal Choudhary, Director of the Integrative Dermatology and Skincare Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, sits down with Mistica LaBrasca to discuss how clinicians can confidently navigate aesthetic conversations during medical dermatology visits in this episode of The Blend.

Topics include:

• Building a trusted network for cosmetic referrals
• Understanding the fundamentals of today’s cosmetic dermatology treatments

“Botox relaxes dynamic lines, fillers restore volume and structure, and energy-based devices improve skin quality, including pigment, redness, texture, and collagen,” says LaBrasca. “Not every concern is a Botox concern, not every wrinkle needs filler, and not every laser is the right laser for every patient.”

Host Sonal Choudhary, MD, the Director of the Integrative Dermatology and Skincare Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, PA, and Peter Lio, MD, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Dermatology and Pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and a partner at Medical Dermatology Associates of Chicago in Chicago, IL, discuss the tenets of Active Dermatologic Care (ADC) for eczema.

In this episode, Dr. Lio shares his five top five tools for managing atopic dermatitis (AD), including:

• Moisturizer. “Ideally, a great moisturizer … has humectants that pull water and hold it in place, and it has emollients, which tend to be oily substances that soften and smooth the skin,” Dr. Lio says.

• Vitamin D supplements

• Multi-strain probiotic supplements

• Cleanser. “My favorite cleansers are ones that have fats or oils in them that, to me, can actually leave the skin more moisturized than before you use the cleanser,” Dr. Lio says

• Sunscreen

Using beef tallow as a moisturizer is trending on TikTok with ‘ski’nfluencers touting its benefits, but is it really all that? Peter Lio, MD, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Dermatology and Pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and a Partner at Medical Dermatology Associates of Chicago in Chicago, IL, weighs in on whether beef tallow should have a place in a skincare routine.

Host Sonal Choudhary, MD, the Director of the Integrative Dermatology and Skincare Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, PA, talks to Peter Lio, MD, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Dermatology and Pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and a partner at Medical Dermatology Associates of Chicago in Chicago, IL, about the role that probiotics can play in the prevention and treatment of eczema.

Key takeaways:

• ·With eczema, bacteria are imbalanced on the skin and in the gut. Some studies show oral probiotics may help. This is why Dr. Lio suggests all his patients take a multi-strain probiotic.
• There likely is not a one-size-fits-all probiotic for eczema due to the heterogeneity of the condition.
• ·Most eczema patients can also benefit from vitamin D supplementation.